Indians Prospect Insider

In the weeks leading up to Opening Day the IBI will be doing all sorts of previews and breakdowns of the Indians from the big leagues down to the minors. One the features will be an in-depth look at several Indians whose performance is critical to the team’s success in 2013. Michael Goodman kicks things off with the man who may be the most important of all, Justin Masterson.

The IBI's Steve Orbanek returns with his weekly staple Then & Now, which takes a closer look at right-handed reliever Matt Langwell this week. Between his performance with the Clippers and in Puerto Rican Winter League, Langwell had a stellar 2012 campaign and now finds himself among the Tribe's non-roster invitees to Spring Training. What does the future hold for Langwell? Steve ponders after the jump.

The IBI's 2013 Indians Top 60 Prospect countdown continues on with outfielder Jorge Martinez. Yes, that's right, Martinez has moved from shortstop to third base last year and is now moving to the outfield this season. Tony explains the move, talks about the incremental strides he is making with his approach and body, and goes into detail on all of his positives and negatives in this detailed scouting report.

Welcome to the continuation of this week's edition of the IBI Power Poll. Today's poll focuses on the best Indians' outfielders of all time and Jim Pete lists his Top 15 and give you a chance to vote....after the jump. The IBI Power Poll takes a look at a relevant topic of the time, an all-time list, or just something that we're talking about here at the IBI home offices. There's nothing like a list to spur a debate, so join us in our lively banter with our weekly polls!

Today the Cleveland Indians announced that they have signed free agent catcher Omir Santos to a minor league contract with a non-roster invitation to Major League spring training camp. He will add to the Indians catching depth this spring and be an option for assignment to Triple-A Columbus.

The Round Robin stage of the Caribbean Series is two-thirds the way over. With the tournament's hump-day now in the rearview mirror, it's a perfect time for the IBI's Arthur Kinney to take a look at the performance thus far of the Tribe's Jose Ramirez, Rob Bryson, and Ezequiel...um, what's that? Eze's not here?!

The IBI's 2013 Indians Top 60 Prospect countdown continues on with right-handed pitcher Cody Anderson. Anderson is still a little rough around the edges and is more of a projection at this point, but has the work ethic, aptitude, and stuff to be a whole lot more and is an interesting starting pitching prospect for the Indians. This coming season will tell a lot about him, and Tony breaks down all the good and bad with him as a prospect in yet another detailed scouting report.

Today the Indians have agreed to terms on a minor league contract with free agent outfielder Jeremy Hermida. The deal is still not official because he has yet to take his physical. Provided he passes his physical, the deal should be officially announced in the next few days and will probably include an invite to Major League spring training.

Welcome to this week's edition of the IBI Power Poll. The Poll will take a look at a relevant topic of the time, an all-time list, or just something that we're talking about here at the IBI home offices. There's nothing like a list to spur a debate, so join us in our lively banter with our weekly polls! Today's poll focuses on the best Indians' outfielders of all time. Join Jim Pete after the jump...to find out the who made the cut...

The IBI's 2013 Indians Top 60 Prospect countdown continues on with right-handed pitcher Dylan Baker. There are a lot of unknowns about Baker as he could be a boom or bust prospect for the Indians, and because of that he comes in with a more conservative ranking in this year's countdown. Tony breaks down all of the unlimited potential, but the many question marks about him in this detailed scouting report.

It has been over a month since the last inbox, and since I am down sick this weekend and working feverishly to finish my new 2013 book, the regular Sunday morning format of “Tribe Happenings” will take a one week hiatus. But fear not, you will get your usual dose of Indians commentary on a variety of topics, but just in a different format this week.....via questions from the fans! The starting rotation among others things are the hot topics discussed...

The IBI's 2013 Indians Top 60 Prospect countdown continues on with infielder Joey Wendle. He is an offensive-oriented infielder from a smaller school that may have been overlooked in the draft, but hit the ground running in his pro debut at Mahoning Valley. He is a lot like Cord Phelps, and may be a better hitter and have a little more versatility than Phelps had when he first came into the organization. Wendle is an interesting prospect, and Tony breaks him down in this detailed scouting report.

Life in the pros consists of day-to-day opportunity. Each day a player treads across the dirt of the diamond, new opportunities surface. For Cleveland Indians’ right-hander Shawn Armstrong, opportunities lie in overlooked places. He had a banner season last year across three levels, and going into this season he is well on the Major League radar. The IBI's Stephanie Metzger recently sat down and talked with him and shares what he said in here latest.

The IBI's 2013 Indians Top 60 Prospect countdown continues on with outfielder Tyler Holt. As one of the most fiery players the Indians have had in their system in a long time, Holt brings a lot of energy and emotion to his game and is a good top of the lineup prospect for the Indians. In this detailed scouting report Tony breaks down his qualities as a leadoff hitter, his skills defensively and on the basepaths, and what obstacles may hinder his chances of reaching the big leagues.

The IBI's Steve Orbanek is back with another edition of the Winter Ball Notebook. With all the winter leagues wrapping up, this happens to be the last week for the notebook, and Steve goes out with a bang as he ranks the top 10 Indians performers from this winter. What players ended up making the list? And who earned the coveted No. 1 spot? Find out after the jump...

Today we continue on with part two of this four part series which compares the projected opening day lineup, starting rotation, bullpen, and bench for this coming season with its 2012 counterpart. In today's piece the focus is on the starting rotation where there are some new faces in the mix not just as trade (Bauer) and free agent pickups (Myers, Kazmir) this offseason, but new options that were not as seriously considered this time last year (McAllister, Kluber) or were not available (Carrasco). Jake Dungan breaks it all down after the jump.

The IBI's 2013 Indians Top 60 Prospect countdown continues on with left-handed pitcher Matt Packer. Packer was another pitcher that dealt with a significant injury setback early last season, but was one of the few that was able to get back on a mound and pitch a good majority of the season and even went out to pitch in the Arizona Fall League. Tony discusses how his stuff was affected by the injury, his health going forward, and what kind of stuff he brings to the table in this detailed scouting report.

Available IBI Books

The 2014 Cleveland Indians Baseball Insider book featuring the Indians' Top 100 Prospects and more is now available. Also, previous editions from 2008-2012 are also available at a discounted rate. Just click on the book image for more information. Thanks again for all the support!